Curable silicone compositions are used in a variety of applications that range from the automotive industry to medical devices. Typical commercial formulations of liquid silicone rubber (LSR) compositions include a multi-component mixture of a vinyl-containing polydiorganosiloxane, a hydrogen-containing polydiorganosiloxane, catalyst, and filler. Often, the commercial formulation is a two-part formulation that is mixed together prior to use. Once the commercial formulation is mixed, the silicone composition is subsequently molded or extruded and vulcanized.
In many cases, silicone compositions having low durometer are needed for various applications. In some instances, the silicone formulation is modified to provide a silicone formulation having a low durometer. Typically, a lower percentage of silica filler is used to lower the durometer, which leads to a large reduction in the viscosity of the formulation. The resulting low viscosity silicone formulation is difficult to process in conventional silicone fabrication equipment. In addition, manufacturers of products that use such silicone formulations are limited in their ability to customize such formulations to better suit a particular product or process. As a result, manufacturers are often left to choose between desired durometer and desired viscosity, without an option to acquire both.
As such, an improved silicone composition and method of manufacturing silicone compositions would be desirable.